Independent Campsite Reviews

Friends recommended Mother Ivey's Bay to us and we loved it so much we've been back four times bringing two groups of family friends and the cousins with us! The beach, the people, the toilets, the pitches and the memories are all wonderful!

Helpful friendly staff

Very clean toilets/showers

Wonderful beach

Great flower borders

Relax and enjoy - I've been every year for the last five years.

Site primarily aimed at caravans but has tent field as well. Tent pitches can vary from quite cramped to quiet (if you have one next to the boundary near the sports field).

Could do with a few more toilet facilities but if you avoid the 'rush hours' you can avoid the queues. Clean and quiet. Good for young families.

The best bit is the private beach which is beautiful. Also easy cycling to other nearby remoter areas and beaches (e.g. Booby's Bay).

Mother Ivey's is a wonderful campsite. The staff are helpful, friendly and welcoming. The pitches (we stayed in a tent) are well priced, although the standard pitches are a bit close together. You can have a luxury pitch for only a few pounds more, and you get more room and electric hook-up. Dogs are welcome - and I mean welcome, and not just tolerated! The position of the site is amazing - absolutely wonderful scenery. The facilities are simple but well looked after and spotlessly clean. I would recommend Mother Ivey's to anyone, and am a repeat visitor.

Regular visitor for >30 years but never again. Nice site in pretty location but not worth the unpleasant attitude of the owner. Despite having booked well in advance we were moved on arrival to a pitch in the meadows next to a road with cars passing next to the tent, with three small children including toddlers who had to be watched all the time to prevent them being run over. The reason for being moved - so the owner could squeeze in two caravans who had just arrived without booking. His attitude was unpleasant and aggressive including shouting at me saying 'take it or leave it - take your money back then'.

This site has changed a great deal over the years and not all for the better. In summer, it really is a case of squeeze in as many as possible, which completely overwhelms the inadequate toilet and shower facilities, including the Portakabin temporary ones dumped on site for the season. At >£25 per night you have the right to expect better. Find somewhere that appreciates its customers more.

We have visited this site for the past 10 years both camping and in a caravan. It is spotlessly clean; the staff are helpful and courteous. It is very family orientated and lovely and quiet- no loud nightclub or young boys racing around in their cars!

The beach is beautiful, and the surrounding countryside and beaches are easily accessible. We thoroughly recommend this site to all.

Site & surrounding area quiet & very beautiful, we have been coming back at least 16 years for family holidays. Nothing much has changed in all that time, the steep walk down to "private" beach has been re-laid and some flower gardens have sprung up but facilities are showing their age now. Owner is very pompous, called us "you little people" and we have been moved around the site twice, which takes most of day to drop a Conway & re-erect just to move 20 yards. If it wasn't for its location the site would not attract its clientele. I can understand how new visitors will find it nice but I have seen it deteriorate over the years, little is reinvested in the site considering the pitch rates. However after saying all that I will be back again next year; but book early, - February at latest, the place is packed in high season.

This is a lovely site that we have visited on many occasions. The site is well laid out, and quiet (no bar or similar). We have always visited in peak season with a tent, and have booked (well in advance) a pitch in Booby's field. I have regularly queued for (non-adjustable) showers, which are often either very sandy or muddy. However, they are well cleaned out daily. During cleaning the blocks are completely shut, and the next block can be some distance away. The staff have always been very pleasant and helpful. Prices are quite expensive, but I would still recommend the site.

Although we've been coming to N Cornwall for the past 25 years this is the first time at this camp site. We were incredibly impressed. Excellent facilities. Quiet, no cars driving around after 11pm. Beautifully landscaped and good facilities. You do need to book early. And you do need to be considerate of others 'space' - but that is the same with any campsite.

We loved it and would unhesitatingly recommend it to others.

Phoned well in advance for advice on booking a camping pitch for 6 nights at end of June for my girlfriend and I. Was told no need to book as "we always have space".

Turned up, first impressions very good.

Was shown all the available pitches for 6 nights.

Found very nice pitch, close to toilets/showers.

Not enough cash to pay for all 6 nights at once, so booked our pitch for 6 nights and payed for 3. Was told this was totally ok, "just come back and pay for remaining 3 when the other nights run out".

Come the morning after the 3rd night (and having more cash), went to reception to pay for remaining 3 nights.

"Your pitch only has 1 more night available - it's got somebody else coming on there tommorrow"!!!

I was given 2 options:

a) Move 20 yards to another pitch, which meant packing everything up and setting up camp again.

b) LEAVE!

We left very disappointed and angry.

Nice looking site, initially staff friendly (were very snotty and agressive over my situation).

Showers/toilets - lacking in numbers and not very well kept (floor always soaked with water which was dangerously slippery).

Beach nice enough - too much rubbish washing up including dead marine life!

Road to campsite very small with huge speed bumps - which damaged the underside of my car, and many others judging by the scrape marks on them!

Don't get your hopes up about this site - don't let the pictures or other reviews fool you....

Fantastic campsite, always spotlessly clean, very quiet and peaceful, surrounded by fantastic beaches. We would never go anywhere else. Can't understand other comments re the staff, we have always found them very polite, helpful and friendly. We had a slight problem with our 1 yr old son and the owner and staff couldn't have been more helpful. I would highly recommend this site to anyone except groups of 19yr olds in Citroen Saxos.

We had been going to Mother Ivey’s for the last 10 years in our touring caravan and would probably still be now if it had not been for the pompous, rude attitude of the owner. We had been sitting outside our awning with friends 2 evenings out of the 3 weeks holiday eating drinking chatting, but no music. This we had done every year we had been down and had never had any problems. We were never loud always considerate for the other people around us and were always wrapped up by 11.00pm or thereabouts. A new security guard had been taken on this year (2005) and by 10.45pm he came to tell us it was time to wrap up and go in .We were almost ready to go when at 11.10pm he arrived again with the owner who was so rude. He spoke to us as if we were dirt on the bottom of his shoe. The security guard had noted the nights we had sat out with friends and that he had told us about our voices(we were chatting not shouting). The owner had checked on his computer how long we were down for and said if we did not stop he would "chuck us off" even though we had over a week left. He would also review our situation about re-booking the following year. At that he went. My friends and family were in shock and could not believe what had happened. He had made us feel as though we were criminals. For the rest of the holiday we could not relax, could not sit outside on the evenings in fear we would be thrown off.

We withdrew our booking form for 2006.I would not give him my hard earned money again to be treated like an under dog.

There are lots of people who have had similar run ins with him and unfortunately he has lost their custom too. It’s a lot of money to pay to go on a prison camp as that’s how he made us feel.

Have been going to site now for the past 10 years both camping and static caravan, both peak and off peak. Every holiday has been fantastic! The site is superb. Clean, quiet and very pretty. The beach is out of this world and the fishing off the spike is great! Am going back now in two weeks for our usual September relaxation. We have never had any problems whatsoever with the attitude of staff etc. A wonderful holiday is to be had at Mother Ivey's!!

We are new to caravanning only our third holiday. We have a boy 6 and a girl 9. We went end of May beginning of June 2006.They have never enjoyed a holiday so much.

Shower/toilet block - perfect never dirty or very wet, my husband had to wait for a shower one day but in the family and female showers I never had a problem.

Many caravans and tents. They were just mowing the meadow for the summer season. I am sure things will be very busy once the Meadow is full in the summer.

The BEACH - I have never been on such a clean and beautiful beach. The sea was so clear and clean the children loved it.

Driving round the site all vehicles have to go at walking speed. We had no problems and the children loved the freedom to ride their bikes without us breathing over their shoulder.

The approach road does have speed ramps on it but without them the road could become a race track. People walk and ride down this road so it needs to be safe. We have a low skirt on our car and at the speed we drove our car was unscratched.

At the end of the day we will be back at the site in less than 7 weeks. We loved the site, location, staff and most of all the beach and sea and surrounding beautiful countryside. So much we booked straight in as soon as my husband was next off work. Can't wait to get back down there even if it takes 7 hours, it is well worth it!

We have just returned from a fabulous week at Mother Ivey's. This was our first visit and were extremely impressed with the site.

Very friendly and helpful staff.

Immaculately clean site, beach and static caravan - far beyond what I anticipated.

We already have another visit planned in two weeks time when we will be camping, and we will definitely be booking again for next year.

We have been caravaning at MIB for the past 12 years and I was a frequent visitor as a child when we caravaned 40 years ago! My friend [who we went with as children] still goes and we meet up there every year [hi Alison!] and have a great time. We have a deluxe pitch and although the facilities get busy we rarely have to wait long for a shower. The beach is out of this world and the sea is clear and beautiful. We don't have to get the car out apart to collect shopping and wander around Padstow! What could be better? Can't wait until 3rd August!!! All the staff are fantastic!!

Hi, I have been going since I was 5 and I’m now 15 and I love it there. I get excited every year before I go, every one is so kind and polite. The toilets and showers are clean and the private beach is great. It’s in a great place because there are lots of other beaches and places to go near it.

First time camping. Fantastic. Family of four. Clean & Safe. Book in the main field.

We stayed here in September/October 2006, absolutely beautiful part of the coast. Staff were extremely pleasant, polite and helpful.....clean, well laid out, choice of pitches, shop excellent. Love the place would go back again and again. Bit pricey for pitch, but worth it and lets face it no cheap pitches anymore!!!!!!

MIB is one of the most fantastic places in the world (to go with a caravan!). The beach is beautiful, the campsite clean and well managed and very quiet (no clubs, discos etc). This year will be our 13th year and we cannot wait - yes the security/maintenance men can be rude, just avoid them remember you are on holiday - they are just doing their job (and it is only one of them!) Patrick the owner has never been rude and the receptionists are always friendly and helpful. The shop has a new owner - a very pleasant chap who wants to please (and it is not too expensive especially as it saves a trip to Tesco!) If you want to stay up being rowdy all night and have a tacky club swimming pool etc then go next door to Harlyn Bay!!! You get what you pay for!! We take teenage children and a dog and have never had a problem - the kids prefer it to all the holidays they have had abroad. Surf (always at one of the 7 beaches within walking distance), sun (sometimes!!) and glorious sandy beaches, relaxation - what more could you ask for. If someone was rude to you - you probably asked for it!!!

First time camping since a child and booked based on the recent reviews on this forum. We were not disappointed. It was a beautiful location with great beaches within walking distance. The facilities were clean and well laid out and even if you are in the furthest corner of the meadow it's not too far to walk to the loo/shower. Would definitely recommend.

Just got back from a stay here.

The staff were friendly, knowledgeable and competent.

The toilet facilities are spotlessly clean however busy at times

The site is well kept and has a beautiful beach

However, there is a major problem with dog dirt on the camping field and on the way to the beach.